Chief Rugby Reporter

"When things are going good, it's pretty easy to run down the hill but, when you've got to run up the hill, that's when you need to put in" ... Cheika. Photo: Anthony Johnson

So here we are. Three games in, one hopeful win, two losses – one as bad as anything NSW have put out on the park for 11 seasons – and a back line with the ominous swing of the turnstile about it as Michael Cheika shuffles the deck at the Waratahs.

No one said it would be easy. Certainly not Cheika. Recall his words of five months ago almost to the day on what it took to take Irish club Leinster from big city underperformers to Heineken Cup champions.

"It was the losses that changed us more than the wins, the big important losses," Cheika said of that four-year process.

"That's what makes the difference, because when things are going good, it's pretty easy to run down the hill but, when you've got to run up the hill, that's when you need to put in."

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There is no disputing the Waratahs were running up hill this week. They may as well have been back heaving themselves up the Coogee steps, such was the emotional fallout from their submission to the Brumbies in Canberra last weekend.

Tonight, back home at Allianz Stadium, they are hoping to atone for those sins with a win against the Cheetahs. If their three outings to date have indicated anything, it is that this is a squad in transition. There is a new coach, new players and a totally different playing style. Cheika himself has warned against expecting a "short-term fix" while the Waratahs are "working towards the bigger picture."

The question is less can Cheika do it than does Sydney have the patience to see him through the kind of change he implemented at Leinster five years ago?

"I don't think Sydney has got the patience for us to be truthful," Waratahs assistant Alan Gaffney said on Thursday. "But it's the only way forward. You've got to go through it. We still expect to have success. We're not [saying] 'live with us while we lose these games because of what we're trying to do'. We're going out to win every game."

The central plank of Cheika's vision for the Waratahs is their much-talked about new commitment to attacking rugby. After a mixed start to the season it has also been the source of most of their growing pains.

"For too long players have been too regimented in what they've done, there have been too many structures put in place for too many players, when they just don't back their own abilities, nor recognise what's in front of them," Gaffney said.

"Of all the phrases I hate 'we play what's in front of us' is the worst but that's all we're trying to do. It's a philosophical change going from this massively structured play to this play where you give them a bit of shape but generally speaking it's not structured rugby. That is what's going to take a little time."

The players who adapt the quickest will have the most success in Cheika's squad this season. In that context his championing of unestablished talents such as Ben Volavola, Tom Kingston, Cam Crawford and Israel Folau (in rugby at least) makes perfect sense. All hunger, no baggage.

He did the same at Leinster when he joined in 2005, developing the likes of Cian Healy, Jamie Heaslip and Rob Kearney, who all went on to Test careers with Ireland.

"Leinster had plenty of big names when Michael arrived but he always wanted to make sure there was depth there without internationals like [Brian] O'Driscoll and [Gordon D'Arcy], he wanted to marry talent with depth," Leinster media manager Peter Breen said.

The parallels with the Waratahs are plain. A large and comfortable cluster of longtime Wallabies has learnt in just the first three weeks of the new season that nothing is certain.

Winger Drew Mitchell was dropped this week, prop Benn Robinson was benched in their season opener, lock Sitaleki Timani followed soon after and Sekope Kepu was the next high-profile scalp. All while former Wallaby Lachie Turner, with 15 Test caps to his name, has barely touched his boots to the turf.

"It's a lot tougher on them this year, a lot more is being demanded of them and expected of them and that level of accountability they've now got is [unprecedented]," Gaffney said.

"Eventually people are going to be given time on the pitch and it is about which guy does aim up and which guy doesn't. It's not a God-given right for some of these guys now to take a position."

Breen, who has seen off four different coaches during his decade with Leinster, says Waratahs fans can expect evolution instead of revolution from Cheika.

It was not until the club won the Celtic League title in 2008, three seasons into Cheika's reign, that Leinster found the belief required to nab the big one, their drought-breaking Heineken Cup.

"I would just say let the man make decisions because success seems to follow him everywhere," Breen said. "If he is given time to do that he will achieve great things. I have no doubt about it."

15 comments so far

"...one as bad as anything NSW have put out on the park for 11 seasons..."

Errr, aren't you forgetting the game where the Crusaders put 96 points put on them in 2002...

Commenter

K1W1974

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 14, 2013, 6:07PM

Which is probably why she specifically said 11 seasons. Including this season, the 2002 season was 12 seasons ago, not 11. Try counting on your fingers and toes.

Commenter

Mikey

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 14, 2013, 9:42PM

Opps, sorry Mikey, you are right, you are so amazing.

Actually 2007 would be worse given they were destoyed in 2 games that season losing to the Blues 34 - 6 and the Brumbies 36 - 10.

No wait, accordinging to Amazing Mikey this loss would still be worse because it was 29 points whereas those two were 28 and 26 respectively

You win Mikey

You are amazing

Commenter

K1W1974

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 15, 2013, 1:51PM

When Cheika dropped Tom Carter, I could almost here the echo of 'Anchor's away' up here in Brisbane.Can you at least bring him back for the QLD-NSW rematch? He was the Reds Man-of-the-Match at Homebush last year.

Commenter

DrToony

Location

Brisbane

Date and time

March 14, 2013, 7:16PM

That isnt very nice. Thank god he is gone though. Slow and hopeless. Cant believe one of the people dropped is Drew Mitchell though. Lose by 30 and you drop a winger. Glad Chapman is gone but Dennis needs the bullet too. The new Rocky Elsom, looks threatening but does nothing. Didnt mind what Holmes did when he came on. Who cares if he is a bit slow around the park if he is the best come scrum time. Eddie Jones ruined Aussie rugby. He picked mobile players and tried to make them ok scrummagers instead of picking the best scrummagers and making them as mobile as possible

Commenter

Franky

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 15, 2013, 9:39AM

Sorry Franky but I've got to disagree with your opinion on Mitchell. He was woeful against the Brumbies. His positional play was completely out and when he did get his hands on the ball, he coughed it up. I've always been a fan of Mitchell but unfortunately he hasn't been the same since that horrific ankle injury. Dave Dennis has been playing out of position at No. 8. While that shouldn't mean too much when it comes to breakdowns and support play, his mindset will be better in his favoured flanker position tonight. As long as Holmes can perform in the lineouts, he gets a tick in my book. When TPN came off last week our forward pack lost the plot. Agree with the Eddie Jones comment though. Rod MacQueen spent 5 years filling the trophy cabinet, then Eddie spent 2 emptying it.

Commenter

TF

Date and time

March 15, 2013, 9:53AM

Agree completely about Dennis and Mitchell TF.

The 'Tahs forwards (with the exception of Hooper and Robinson) looked lazy and unenergetic last week, and this led to ill-discipline with Kepu the worst offender.

Unfortunately the new-found attacking attitude in the backs will only be able to flourish if the forwards hold up their end - the lineout, scrum and breakdown all contributed greatly to last weeks debacle - so the forwards need to step-up the energy and aggression levels.

Commenter

Interested Bystander

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 15, 2013, 12:25PM

They only picked Carter due to his last name.

Unfortunately, no one checked to see if he was a relation to THE Carter.

He was and is not.

Why it took them so long to figure it out I have no idea.

Commenter

piru

Location

Perth via Rakaia

Date and time

March 15, 2013, 6:29PM

The fans will show patience with Cheika and give him time, we've mostly stuck with Deans after all. The big question is whether the fools at the NSWRU will be patient, these are the guys who sacked Link!

Commenter

Casper

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 15, 2013, 10:27AM

Couldn't agree more Casper - not only Link, but Chris Hickey and a few others. I really believe the trouble is the NSWRU Board - doesn't seem to matter the coach, the players, the team seems to play to "not lose" by much, rather than play fast, initiative, running rugby to have fun! That's all any of the fans want to see!